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Better than Homemade

Amazing Food That Changed the Way We Eat

Audiobook
1 of 1 copy available
1 of 1 copy available
Americans pride themselves in their knack for innovation, and nowhere has America's can-do attitude been more apparent than at the supermarket. Need a cheese that is virtually indestructible? Want to find a way to stretch a pound of hamburger into a hearty main course for a family of five? Hard pressed for time to throw together a home-cooked meal? In the early decades of the twentieth century, and from the world wars to the cold wars, food producers and everyday dreamers met these challenges with the same ingenuity and resourcefulness that launched the country to the moon and back, with groundbreaking packaging, new technologies, and improvements on Mother Nature. Better Than Homemade is food biographer Carolyn Wyman's freewheeling and entertaining cultural history of the innovative packaged foods that changed the way we eat. With dozens of archival ads and original product shots of Hamburger Helper, Kraft Macaroni and Cheese, Minute Rice, Coffee-mate, Green Giant Canned Peas, Lipton Cup-a-Soup, Pillsbury Crescent Rolls-and many more revolutionary products-Better Than Homemade highlights the fascinating stories behind the food inventions; the histories behind the brands and icons that have become synonymous with them; the jingles that have made them such a large part of our popular culture; and the recipes that have tutored generations of homemakers and comfort food master chefs.
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  • Reviews

    • Publisher's Weekly

      August 16, 2004
      In an effort that will perhaps be best enjoyed by baby boomers who have yet to overdose on the Food Network, Wyman (Spam: A Biography
      ; Jell-O: A Biography
      ) unwraps 46 very familiar products to reveal their histories, revel in their mysteries and devour their marketing ploys. Anyone still intrigued by Hamburger Helper, Twinkies, Wonder Bread and Jiffy Pop will enjoy the efforts at wordplay ("Velveeta, All-American Hunk") and the concise narratives (the saga of Minute Rice in a two-minute read). Trivia connoisseurs will be happy to learn it takes more than 90 minutes a day to wash the walls and floors at the Marshmallow Fluff factory and that "among Hispanics with Caribbean roots, Clamato (and most other shellfish-based foods) is considered an aphrodisiac." Odder than the inclusion of Beer Nuts in a chapter entitled "Triumphs of Technology" is the fact that Instant Mashed Potatoes and Minute Rice are delegated to the more humble "Homemaker Helpers" section. Most interesting is the chapter on "Marketing Marvels," which explores Jell-O flavors that are no longer available, the voice behind the classic SpaghettiOs jingle and the birth of the Jolly Green Giant. The book's graphics sparkle and should induce cravings for Mrs. Paul's Fish Sticks and a nice Hawaiian Punch.

Formats

  • OverDrive Listen audiobook

Languages

  • English

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